When he's finished playing baseball - which could be quite soon, according to some reports - Alex Rodriguez can become an actor.

At 37, he retains his Hollywood looks and chiseled 6-4 frame. He's comfortable in front of the camera and was cordial and personable - almost likeable - in dealing with the media throng that greeted him early last week during his three days on a rehab assignment in Reading.

Outside of George Zimmerman, no man in America has been under more scrutiny and pressure over the past few weeks than the New York Yankees third baseman, but you could never tell by watching A-Rod.

With everyone presuming his guilt, with hourly reports that Major League Baseball is ready to throw the hammer down on his career for his involvement in the Biogenesis scandal and with daily details surfacing about his public riff with the Yankees front office, Rodriguez never flinched as he faced the media.

He remained above the fray, staying in character, cool and detached. He seemed not to notice the controversies swirling around him.

Has he been lying for so long that he no longer recognizes the truth? Or does he possess some super-human ability to filter out the bad vibes that surround him?

He claimed to have heard only cheering fans Monday and Tuesday at FirstEnergy Stadium. He might want to have his hearing checked, because the boo birds were out in loud force.

A-Rod makes news even when he doesn't do anything. That's why all the major New York newspapers - the Daily News, the Times, the Post, even The Wall Street Journal - sent reporters to Reading.

After Tuesday's game, a reporter asked if he was going to accompany the team to Trenton to continue his rehab. The three-time American League Most Valuable Player had a dumbfounded look on his face.

"Trenton?" he said. "Where's that?"

He was notified it remains in New Jersey, where it has been the state capital since 1790.

"Never been there," Rodriguez said flatly.

Everyone was waiting for him to crack a smile about the joke. But he didn't.

The New York press crew members were perplexed in the press box minutes later. They couldn't tell if Rodriguez - born in New York and raised in Miami - was joking or not.

Leonardo DiCaprio, you've got competition coming.

- Mike Drago

Philly fan friendly?

Chip Kelly's first NFL training camp begins in a day, but the Philadelphia Eagles' new head coach isn't looking to make a statement over the next month or so.

"I'm not that deep," said Kelly. "I don't ever think that way, about signature moments and those things."

What he does think about is how to maximize his team's practice time on the field and in the classroom, and how to translate that to game performance on Sunday.

Kelly said people wave to him as he jogs around the South Philadelphia neighborhood where the team trains, and he's spoken with enough fans in his six months here to get a sense of their passion for the Birds and their excitement about his arrival.

But he's also pragmatic about it.

"The fans in Philly tell you a lot of things," he said. "It's a very interesting town. They've been great; they've been great.

"It's obvious they're extremely passionate about the Eagles. That's evident no matter where you go. It's been awesome. But we haven't played a game yet, either, so that could change."

- Steve Patton

COR looking for more

The City of Reading (COR) under-18 tennis team is headed to Princeton, N.J., in August for the Middle States Championships.

COR qualified by recently winning the Eastern Pennsylvania district title.

On Thursday, six football players became the first current athletes to sue the NCAA for their lack of monetary compensation over the use of their names in merchandised products.

It's a lawsuit that hopefully brings overdue change to a topic that's become more heavily discussed in recent years, due to the overwhelming revenues the NCAA receives, particularly from football and basketball.

I know, isn't it crazy? Imagine athletes getting something in return for the sales of their names and likenesses on jerseys and video games.

Oh wait, that happens in all pro sports.

But college athletes can't receive any money or else they could be classified as "professional." Oh, no! What a horrible thing that'd be!

In a way, this is reminiscent of past sports movements, such as women's participation, steroid testing and free agency. We're gradually realizing the right thing to do and, eventually, everyone will get there.

In the end, it shouldn't be that arduous for schools to adjust to this new mindset. Set up accounts for these athletes to receive a share of the revenues, and don't allow them to touch the money until they've graduated.

It's a great way to avoid some of them spending it unwisely and it'll give them more motivation to do well in school - something most athletes will need, considering they wouldn't be turning pro.

Unfortunately, because of how radical this change would be for the NCAA, it won't budge unless it has to. After all, it is money we're talking about.